Author: Mohammed Abbasi

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David Brown Speedback – a 2014 Aston Martin DB5?

Mohammed Abbasi

It looks like an Aston Martin DB5, but new handmade British sports car is a Jaguar XKR underneath A brand-new British sports car company, David Brown Automotive, has revealed its first ever model at a private event in London. The Speedback is a handcrafted 2+2 coupe designed to reference classic GT cars from the sixties, while using modern technology where possible. The chassis and powertrain are carried over directly from a Jaguar XKR – hence the unmistakable crackling exhaust note when the engine fired up at the reveal. Under the skin is the XK’s aluminium spaceframe chassis, 503bhp 5.0-litre supercharged V8 and six-speed auto, … Continue reading David Brown Speedback – a 2014 Aston Martin DB5?

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‘Sex symbols’ a poor proxy in Sri Lanka

Mohammed Abbasi

By Eve Aronson, Marlijn Meijer, Eleonora Maria Mazzoli and Filiz Dagci  A movie star, a beauty queen and a popular model are among candidates running in Sri Lankan’s provincial elections on March 29, leading some Sri Lankans to accuse political parties of pushing “sex symbols” in the name of female political representation.  The arrival of models and actresses onto the political stage, with their pictures splashed across newspapers, is beginning to make voters wonder about the political motivation behind such moves.  “Today, we must grapple with the possibility that celebrities, mainly women celebrities, are being used as smokescreens in politics,” said … Continue reading ‘Sex symbols’ a poor proxy in Sri Lanka

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Palestinian leaders’ showdown turns ugly

Mohammed Abbasi

When late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was confined by Israeli soldiers to his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Mohammed Dahlan reigned supreme. As perhaps the most powerful and effective member of the “Gang of Five”, he managed the affairs of the ruling Fatah movement, coordinated with Israel regarding matters of security, and even wheeled and dealed in regional and international affairs.  That was the period between March and April 2002, and it was a different time. Back then, Dahlan – a former Palestinian Authority (PA) minister, National Security advisor and head of Gaza’s Preventative Security Service (PSS)- was … Continue reading Palestinian leaders’ showdown turns ugly

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Racism on the rise in India

Mohammed Abbasi

NEW DELHI – L Khino, 27, vividly remembers Christmas Eve at the Indian capital’s famed Connaught Place shopping hub four years ago: the blinking lights, the buzzing crowd, the winter chill – and the salty taste of her tears.  Khino had just arrived in New Delhi from her home in India’s northeastern state of Manipur. “I was so excited. But suddenly a group of men surrounded me. ‘How much do you charge for a night?’ they asked. I yelled, ‘Get away,’ but they pinched my cheek and touched my back,” she tells IPS.  Others giggled, some laughed aloud. A few … Continue reading Racism on the rise in India

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Pakistani Taliban tactics spread silent fear

Mohammed Abbasi

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) or Pakistani Taliban’s strength lies in its evasiveness and its permeation across society. Through ratcheting up attacks on security personnel and common citizens inside Pakistan, they have largely dispelled the notion that were losing vitality in operations after the killing of their leader Hakimullah Mehsud in a November 2013 US drone strike. Indeed, they have grown more predatory and relentless since the elimination of their erstwhile leader.  The TTP after the death of Hakimullah, nominated a more unruly leader named Mullah Fazalullah who is a known hardliner even by TTP’s standards. He is a diehard opponent … Continue reading Pakistani Taliban tactics spread silent fear

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Rediscovering the real ‘ideology’ of Pakistan

Mohammed Abbasi

More than six decades since its creation, Pakistan is still searching for its lost soul, the soul that went missing when Jinnah passed away. How many of the youth of today have had the chance to go through Jinnah’s speech to the Constituent Assembly on August 11, 1947? A reading of this masterpiece is a must for all Pakistanis. The Quaid said: “If we want to make this great state of Pakistan happy and prosperous, we should wholly and solely concentrate on the well-being of the people, and especially of the masses and the poor…We should begin to work in … Continue reading Rediscovering the real ‘ideology’ of Pakistan

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Al Qaeda militants moving from Pakistan to set up in Syria

Mohammed Abbasi

      A New York Times report has claimed that Al Qaeda militants and planners travelled from Pakistan to Syria where they are seeking to establish a base in order to carry out strikes against the United States and Europe in the future. Director of US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), John Brennan, recently expressed apprehensions over the issue before a House panel saying “we are concerned about the use of Syrian territory by the Al Qaeda organisation to recruit individuals and develop the capability to be able not just to carry out attacks inside of Syria, but also to use Syria … Continue reading Al Qaeda militants moving from Pakistan to set up in Syria

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French airforce sergeant who planned to shoot Muslims has case dismissed

Mohammed Abbasi

French airforce sergeant who planned to shoot Muslims has case dismissed   The Collectif contre l’Islamophobie en France draws our attention to reports that Christophe Lavigne, a sergeant in the French airforce with far-right links, will not now be prosecuted. Lavigne was arrested last August and charged with planning an armed attack on worshippers at the Al Forqane mosque in the Lyon suburb of Vénissieux to coincide with the end of Ramadan. Judges had already dismissed the charge against Lavigne of possessing ammunition in connection with a terrorist enterprise, on the grounds that the bullets were of a grade permitted for collectors of historical weapons and so … Continue reading French airforce sergeant who planned to shoot Muslims has case dismissed

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Inside The Facebook-WhatsApp Megadeal:

Mohammed Abbasi

The Courtship, The Secret Meetings, The $19 Billion Poker Game This story appears in the March 24, 2014 issue of Forbes. C WhatsApp cofounder — and new billionaire — Jan Koum   “Get together?” The subject line of the e-mail was like every other come-on that hit Jan Koum’s in-box in the spring of 2012. He was pounded daily by investors who wanted a piece of his company, WhatsApp. Hatched on his birthday, Feb. 24, 2009, WhatsApp was emerging as a global phenomenon. Some 90 million people were using it to text and send photos for free. No social utility had ever grown … Continue reading Inside The Facebook-WhatsApp Megadeal:

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Saudi clerics urge Muslims to shun 99 Names!

Mohammed Abbasi

Saudi clerics urge faithful to shun ‘Islamic’ superhero series By AFP   Saudi Grand Mufti Abdulaziz al Sheikh. PHOTO: AFP RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s top clerics have declared an Islam-inspired cartoon series, which earned praise from US President Barack Obama, a “work of the devil” that Muslims should not watch. The television version of superhero comic book “The 99″ is being aired by Saudi-owned satellite channel MBC3, based in Dubai in the neighbouring United Arab Emirates. But in a religious decree carried by Saudi websites on Monday, the clerics ruled the series blasphemous because the superheroes of its title are based on the … Continue reading Saudi clerics urge Muslims to shun 99 Names!